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Here’s a sneak peek at my Sunday column. (The column, by the way, has a new name — “Think Too Much,” which, if you’re curious, is the title of two separate Paul Simon songs. You can find both songs on Simon’s underrated 1983 album “Hearts and Bones.”)
But enough about Simon. Here’s the Sunday column, inspired by a meeting we held recently with Jim Patterson, Corvallis’ new city manager:
The Jim Patterson era at Corvallis City Hall begins Monday, when he officially starts his new job as the city manager.
Judging from an hour-long session the Gazette-Times’ cialis online editorial board had recently with Patterson, my guess is that we’re in for a lively few years.
Oh, there’s certainly enough going on already with city government these days to keep it interesting, but Patterson – who came across as smart and funny and quite willing to speak his own mind – seems certain to add some spice to the mix.
At the very least, it seems likely that the outgoing and occasionally brash Patterson will make for an interesting contrast with his predecessor, Jon Nelson, who did quietly outstanding work in
the job over a remarkable 18-year run. That’s not a mark that seems likely to be broken any time soon – well, at least for 18 years. It could be that Patterson will eventually prove to be too much of a lightning rod to match Nelson’s mark, but we’ll see.
In fact, our chat with Patterson prompted some idle musings about whether the City Council – which made the decision to hire him – consciously (or subconsciously) set out to find somebody with a personality that stood in stark contrast to Nelson’s.
But that, as Orson Welles once said in a completely different context, may just be “dollar-book Freud,” idle psychological speculation.
What seems beyond speculation is that Patterson, who comes from a similar job in Sherwood, is relishing the chance to use his status as the new kid on the City Hall block to ask some tough questions about Corvallis and how its city government operates. We might see some folks in government squirm a bit.
Some of the rest of us might get a chance to squirm as well.
And, even though Patterson vowed that he’d be asking a lot of questions and listening carefully to the responses, my guess is it won’t take him too long to start to say what he thinks. “These times that we’re operating in call for very direct communication,” he said – but he emphasized that the communication needs to be respectful.
That sounds like someone who’s done his homework on Corvallis.
It was clear that he wants to be comfortable that city government is operating as efficiently as possible before he starts making the case that taxpayers should pay more for city services.
It also was clear that he’s not convinced by those who argue for no growth in Corvallis: “It’s the way you go about growing” that makes the difference, he said.
But, he added, it’s important that these discussions and debates rise up from a common foundation:
“We need to be able to first agree on what we agree on,” he said. “We all want what’s best for Corvallis.”
Now, that REALLY sounds like someone who’s done his homework on Corvallis.
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